Towel cabinet



Dec. 8,1925. 1,564,292

G. A. STEINER v TOWEL CABINET A Filed June 24. 1922 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 fig. 6

IN VENTOR- GEORGE l STE/NE)? G. A. STEINER Dec. 8 1925- TOWEL CABINET Filed June 24. 1922 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fla. 5

INYENTOR R 6 m m J T A 2 E m Patented Dec. 8, 1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE A. STEINER, 0F SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH, ASSIGNOR T0 STEINER SALES COM- PANY, OF SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH, A CORPORATION OF UTAH.

TOVI' EL CABINET.

Application filed June 24, 1922. Serial No. 570,703.

I! '0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE A. STEINER, citizen of the United States, resident of Salt Lake City, in the county of Salt Lake, State of Utah, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Towel Cabinets, of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to provide an improved tension means for the soiled towel roll to the end that the web of towel will be firmly and snugly wound:

A further object is to provide a simple, inexpensive stop device which can be automatic or non-automatic as desired.

A further object is to ,provide means whereby the use of the towel by a person standing in front of the cabinet is facilitated.

Other objects of the invention will appear from the following detailed description.

In the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification,

Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view thru a towel cabinet embodying my invention;

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the same;

Figure 3 is a sectional view on the line 33 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a sectional view on 4-4 of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a view corresponding the line to Figure 3 showing the stop device arranged for automatic operation;

Figure 6 is a sectional view on line 6-6 of Figure 1.

In the drawing, 2 represents the rear wall of the cabinet, 3 is a door at the front of the cabinet, and 4 the side walls and 5 the upper end of the cabinet. The side walls have guideways 6 and 6 for the clean'and soiled towel rolls, 7 and 8. A feed roll 9 is provided beneath the soiled towel roll and slightly in the rear of the same and on this feed roll the clean towel rests by gravity. An idle roll 10 is provided near the bottom of the cabinet and adjacent a feed opening 11 thru which the web of clean towel is delivered-to the user, the idle roll 10 forming an anti-friction surface with which the towel web contacts. A pair of bars 12 are fastened to the bottom of the cabinet and a roll 13 is mounted on these bars and is supported thereby a considerable distance in front ofthe cabinet, and the opening thru which the towel web is delivered. This distance is preferably about four or five inches and the function of the roll is to provide for freedom of use of the wiping space of the clean towel. Without this roll a person will often pull out several lengths of clean towel in order to obtain more freedom of its use. In other words, the attempt to get as far away as possible from the bottom of the door. When we apply this arrangement to the cabinet the person using the clean towel will use it up to the small roll, leaving several inches of clean towel between this roll and the bottom of the cabinet, and permitting sufficient freedom of use.

This arrangement may be used on a cabinet or not, as preferred, by the person having the cabinet installed. From this roll the towel depends in. a wide loop beneath the cabinet and extends upwardly to a passage 14 provided between the rear wall of the cabinet and a partition 15 that is joined to the rear edge of the floor or bottom 16 of the cabinet.

At the uper edge of the partition 15 I prefer to provide a gate 17 hinged at 18 to the partition and normally held in its raised vertical position by a spring clip 19. When this clip is moved to its released position the gate may swing forward and allow the person placing the clean roll in the cabinet to pass the web up in the rear of the gate to the soiled towel roll. This gate extends a considerable distance above the clean roll to prevent an unauthorized person reaching up thru the bottom of the cabinet on this clean towel roll, and the upper edge of the gate has preferably a beveled surface 20 over which the web of towel slides to a tension roll 21, that is mounted in the rear of and beneath the soiled towel roll 8 and adjacent an inclined shelf or ledge 22 that is mounted on the rear wall of the cabinet to prevent the towel from being fed in back of the roll 21.

A feed roll 23 is provided beneath the soiled towel roll and contacts therewith and sprocket wheels-2 1 and 24 are provided on the shafts of the feed roll 9 and 23, and have a driving belt 25 between them, and a dog 26 engaging a ratchet 23, preferably integral with the sprocket 24, preventing backward movement of the feed rolls.

I prefer also in this cabinet to provide a means for normally locking the feed of the clean towel, it being necessary for the user to manipulate the mechanism and release the towel roll before a length of clean towel can be obtained.

On the shaft of the upper feed roll I mount a housing 28 in which a bar 29 is adapted to slide longitudinally, being limited in its outward movement by a pin 30. The opposite end of the bar has a finger grip 31. A plate 32 is secured to the wall of the cabinet and has a cam 33 thereon, and the oar 29 has a lug 34thereon that is engaged by the cam surface 33 as the bar revolves direct into contact with a stop lug on the plate 32. The bar also has a lug 36 which contacts with the housing when the bar is pushed into the full line position shown in Figure *l to limit the inward movement and when the bar is pushed in the lug 34 will clear the stop lug 35 and allow further revolution of the bar and the feed rolls.

With this device it will be necessary for each user of the towel topush in the bar and disengage it from the stop lug before the additional length of towel can be obtained, and at' the end of each rev-olutionvthe bar will be automatically set to prevent further freedom of the towel until the user manipulates the bar and moves it to its released position.

In some cases it is desirable to have the release automatic and I may, therefore. move the plate 32 to the position shown in Figure 5, while the bar 29, instead of bein horizontal will be vertical and when the ug 3% engaging the cam surface 33 and the bar is raised and the lug is in contact with the stop 35, the feed of the towel will be arrested momentarily, but as soon as the user releases the towel and the pull thereon ceases, the bar 29 will drop by gravity, moving to its released position and allowing further revolution of the feed rolls and additional deliverv of the web of clean toweling.

I claim as my invention:

1. A towel holder comprising a support for the clean and soiled towel rolls, feed rolls having a driving connection between them and with which said towel rolls contact respectively, the clean towel roll being near the bottom of said holder and the soiled towel roll near the top thereof, the lower portion of said holder having an opening through which the web of clean towel is fed to the user, and the rear of said holder having a. gate hinged to swing forwardly as a towel is being inserted but normally, held upright to form with the back of the casing, a passage through which the soiled towel web is fed to the soiled towel roll, a tension being near the bottom of the cabinet and the soiled towel roll near the top thereof, feed 7 rolls with which said clean and soiled towel rolls contact respectively, the lower portion of said holders having an opening through which the web of clean toweling is fed to the users, a partition spaced from the rear of the holder and forming a passage through which the web of soiled towel is directed to the soiled towel roll, and a gate hinged to said partition and forming a vertical continuation thereof and adapted to be tilted forwardly toward the clean towel for con venience in threading the web of towel through said passage, said gate having means for holding it normally in its vertical position.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 19th da of June, 1922.

. GEO GE A. STEINER. 

